“Bisclavret” the fourth lay in The Lais de Marie de France, is the story of the titled character, Bisclavret, is a baron in Britteny who is held in high respect with the king, vanishes for three days every three weeks and no one knows where or why; not even his wife knows. It gets to the point where his wife confronts him and pleads for him to tell her of his where about on those days and why. He eventually divulges his secret; he is a werewolf (a Garwaf). He explains that he needs to hide his clothes in a safe place so he can return in human form. This information shocks his wife, to the point that she begins to think of ways to leave him. She decided to use a knight that has a crush bon her to help her leave her husband. The next week she sent the knight to steal her husband’s clothing, and when her husband doesn’t come back, she marries the knight who helped her, while the people try to find Bisclavret, but eventually give up. A year later the king found Bisclavret, still stuck in wolf form, on a hunt. Bisclavret reacts to the king by running to him and showing him as much affection as a wolf could to beg for mercy. In response to this behavior, the king takes him back to his castle to live with him. One day, the knight who married Bisclavret’s wife was invited to a celebration at the king’s castle and once he sees him, Bisclavret attacks him. He calls off Bisclavret by threatening him with his staff. Since the wolf had never acted violently before, everyone assumed that the knight must have wronged him in some way. Later on, the king visits the area where the baron used to live and brings the werewolf along with him. Bisclavret's wife learns of the king's arrival and takes many gifts for him. When Bisclavret eventually sees his former wife, no one can restrain him. He attacks her, tearing off her nose. A wise man pointed out the coincidence that the woman was the wife of the knight who was also attacked and that she was the wife of the missing baron. The king then has the wife questioned under torture. She confesses everything and gives up the stolen clothing. Then the king's men put the clothing before the wolf, but he ignores it. The wise man tells them to leave the wolf alone in a bedchamber with the clothes. Bisclavret does so and when the king sees again his favorite baron. The king restores Bisclavret's lands to him and exiles the baroness and her knight. The wife was cursed; many of the wife's female descendants were then on born without noses.
Annotated Bibiography
Rothschild, Judith Rice. "A Rapprochement between Bisclavret and Lanval." Speculum 48.1 (1973): 78-88. JSTOR. Medieval Academy of America. Web. 17 Oct. 2013
This article, by Judith Rice Rothschild, compared the two Lais “Bisclavret” and “Lanval.” In which she explores the themes and motifs that are similar between the two stories. She argues that these themes and motifs are repeated throughout all the lays and in different variations. The point of this article is two compare the lays. I am only focusing on Bisclavret, but this doesn’t mean that this article is completely irrelevant to me.it can serve as a tool to help me understand the lay’s themes relative to the others in the collection. All of Rothchild’s statement are and will be helpful my research.
In this article Lucas Wood goes deep into the mythical side of this lay has a deeper figurative and psychological meaning. He elaborates on how every in Bisclavret’s journey happens for a reason. This extensive article goes on to explain how Bisclavret’s humanity comes into ply when here is no human body for him to live in. this source does explore different topics surrounding the lay and an prove to be helpful in understanding the perspective of Bisclavret himself. However, the author’s vernacular does make his point seem hard to understand, thus making it more difficult to further elaborate on in more research down the road.
Curtis, Renee L. "Physical and Mental Cruelty in the "Lais" of Marie De France." Arthuriana(n.d.): n. pag. Rpt. in Vol. 6. Scriptorium Press: n.p., 1996. 22-35. Ser. 1. JSTOR. Web. 17 Oct. 2013. http://www.jstor.org/stable/27869168
The article "Physical and Mental Cruelty in the "Lais" of Marie De France,” elaborates on how all of the lays by Marie de France same the common theme of cruelty. The article goes on to explain why such themes exist in the lays as well as what effect they have on the characters. Even though Bisclavret is not specifically mentioned as an example within the text, the points Curtis makes can easily be applies to this lay. The tale of Bisclavret is littered with examples of both physical and mental cruelty. I feel that this source will help me shape what type of research I will conduct; its broads will serve as both an advantage and a disadvantage
Quote Analysis “The lai uses the lycanthropy motif to rearticulate the problem of human appearance and reality as a question about animality and the limits of the human--a question it answers in a way calculated to dispel one of courtly society's founding aporias. Courtliness is bound up with a commitment to accept appearance as truth: beauty denotes virtue or prowess, mastery of polite forms bespeaks nobility of spirit, and the knight's martial performance actualizes him as a heroic subject.” (Wood) In this quote selected from "The Werewolf as Mobius Strip, or Becoming Bisclavret" displays, first, the focus of the article; that there is a deeper meaning to Bisclavret being a werewolf. The excerpt starts off with claiming that there is the motif of lycanthropy, the transformation of a wolf, as recounted by folk tales, plays a major symbol for two problems in the poem. One being that it is a failed beauty and the beast tale where Bisclavret’s monthly beastly form is completely rejected by his wife. Also, Wood argues, that it has to do with the “limits of the human” meaning that by becoming a wolf Bisclavret would need to a more inexplicable amount of effort to keep and maintain his human it when he is a wolf and remains to be one for an extended period of time. The quote goes on to say that the poem offers a new lesson of how, through his new appearance and that commitment to this appearance, Bisclavret is characterized a purer than this wife who remained human for the entirety of the lay. Wood writes “beauty denotes virtue,” meaning that beauty was always a form of purity, however it was the wolf, the non-human, who remained more virtuous than his wife whose betrayed her husband to marry another.
“Every single lay of Marie de France contains a person, sometime more them one whose behavior displays great cruelty, either physical or mental: this can be the one hero or heroine, or some other important personage. Whilst it is clear that some of the figures may well be traditional […] this in no way invalidates my argument, namely that Marie has chosen to include an unusually large number of ‘villains’ in her Lais…” (Curtis) This quote taken from "Physical and Mental Cruelty in the "Lais" of Marie De France," introduces the reader to the idea of the recurring theme through all of the Lais of Marie de France. This quotes claims that there is one person, or more, who are responsible for cruelty of a physical and mental nature to the main character of the lay. The villains of this lay is the wife of Bisclavret and the knight she later made her husband. It can be argued however that is just the wife who is just the villain because she is the lone person responsible for Bisclavret extended term as a werewolf, and the knight is just a mere puppet with no say in the matter. That being said it is obvious that there is cruelty given to Bisclavret in this lay. The physical cruelty is that he is cut off from physically turning back to his human self after the three full day of being a were wolf. With this physical cruelty come the mental, meaning by remaining a werewolf for so long could take a toll on Bisclavret’s mental state, especially the state of his humanity for he is unable to be a physical human for over a year.
“At the beginning of the poem, for example, the reader does not know where the husband and wife are conversing. In addition to the lack of valuable details, there is a relative scarcity of personal emotions and reactions reported in the lay. The suppression of such information results in more intense focus upon both the unfolding action and t the moral problem of the wife’s infidelity” (Rothschild) In this quote from "A Rapprochement between Bisclavret and Lanval," Rothschild conveys that the physical trap that Bisclavret was put in can be predicted right off the bat. Rothschild claims that is it through the lack of information that make one able to tell that the marriage between Bisclavret and his wife is not meant to last. The conversations that is described in the beginning of the lay lacks “personal emotions and reactions” meaning that Marie de France was probably trying to take away from the positive characteristic of Bisclavret’s wife. So far in the beginning of the poem, the reader already knows that Bisclavret is beloved by the king, thus making it the only information known about the baron. On the other hand Bisclavret’s wife has no description to her and with such a lack of information it makes it immensely easy for the reader to pass judgment of Bisclavret’s wife as the villain of the tale. Rothschild argues that “The suppression of such information results in more intense focus upon both the unfolding action and t the moral problem of the wife’s infidelity” this means that the reader would be distracted if further information about the baron and his wife were given, thus leaving room for the reader to focus on the pure actions and consequences of the lay; Bisclavret’s prevention of returning to human form and his wife’s infidelity after he plan was executed.
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Lais of Marie de France
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“Bisclavret” Summary
“Bisclavret” the fourth lay in The Lais de Marie de France, is the story of the titled character, Bisclavret, is a baron in Britteny who is held in high respect with the king, vanishes for three days every three weeks and no one knows where or why; not even his wife knows. It gets to the point where his wife confronts him and pleads for him to tell her of his where about on those days and why. He eventually divulges his secret; he is a werewolf (a Garwaf). He explains that he needs to hide his clothes in a safe place so he can return in human form. This information shocks his wife, to the point that she begins to think of ways to leave him. She decided to use a knight that has a crush bon her to help her leave her husband. The next week she sent the knight to steal her husband’s clothing, and when her husband doesn’t come back, she marries the knight who helped her, while the people try to find Bisclavret, but eventually give up. A year later the king found Bisclavret, still stuck in wolf form, on a hunt. Bisclavret reacts to the king by running to him and showing him as much affection as a wolf could to beg for mercy. In response to this behavior, the king takes him back to his castle to live with him. One day, the knight who married Bisclavret’s wife was invited to a celebration at the king’s castle and once he sees him, Bisclavret attacks him. He calls off Bisclavret by threatening him with his staff. Since the wolf had never acted violently before, everyone assumed that the knight must have wronged him in some way. Later on, the king visits the area where the baron used to live and brings the werewolf along with him. Bisclavret's wife learns of the king's arrival and takes many gifts for him. When Bisclavret eventually sees his former wife, no one can restrain him. He attacks her, tearing off her nose. A wise man pointed out the coincidence that the woman was the wife of the knight who was also attacked and that she was the wife of the missing baron. The king then has the wife questioned under torture. She confesses everything and gives up the stolen clothing. Then the king's men put the clothing before the wolf, but he ignores it. The wise man tells them to leave the wolf alone in a bedchamber with the clothes. Bisclavret does so and when the king sees again his favorite baron. The king restores Bisclavret's lands to him and exiles the baroness and her knight. The wife was cursed; many of the wife's female descendants were then on born without noses.
Annotated Bibiography
Rothschild, Judith Rice. "A Rapprochement between Bisclavret and Lanval." Speculum 48.1 (1973): 78-88. JSTOR. Medieval Academy of America. Web. 17 Oct. 2013
This article, by Judith Rice Rothschild, compared the two Lais “Bisclavret” and “Lanval.” In which she explores the themes and motifs that are similar between the two stories. She argues that these themes and motifs are repeated throughout all the lays and in different variations. The point of this article is two compare the lays. I am only focusing on Bisclavret, but this doesn’t mean that this article is completely irrelevant to me.it can serve as a tool to help me understand the lay’s themes relative to the others in the collection. All of Rothchild’s statement are and will be helpful my research.
Wood, Lucas. "The Werewolf as Mobius Strip, or Becoming Bisclavret." The Romanic Review 102.1-2 (2011): 3. Literature Resource Center. Web. 20 Oct. 2013. http://go.galegroup.com/ps/i.do?id=GALE%7CA312171209&v=2.1&u=mlin_c_fitchcol&it=r&p=LitRC&sw=w&asid=432e88f0dad3168af5e0ddce1a4d3114.
In this article Lucas Wood goes deep into the mythical side of this lay has a deeper figurative and psychological meaning. He elaborates on how every in Bisclavret’s journey happens for a reason. This extensive article goes on to explain how Bisclavret’s humanity comes into ply when here is no human body for him to live in. this source does explore different topics surrounding the lay and an prove to be helpful in understanding the perspective of Bisclavret himself. However, the author’s vernacular does make his point seem hard to understand, thus making it more difficult to further elaborate on in more research down the road.
Curtis, Renee L. "Physical and Mental Cruelty in the "Lais" of Marie De France." Arthuriana(n.d.): n. pag. Rpt. in Vol. 6. Scriptorium Press: n.p., 1996. 22-35. Ser. 1. JSTOR. Web. 17 Oct. 2013. http://www.jstor.org/stable/27869168
The article "Physical and Mental Cruelty in the "Lais" of Marie De France,” elaborates on how all of the lays by Marie de France same the common theme of cruelty. The article goes on to explain why such themes exist in the lays as well as what effect they have on the characters. Even though Bisclavret is not specifically mentioned as an example within the text, the points Curtis makes can easily be applies to this lay. The tale of Bisclavret is littered with examples of both physical and mental cruelty. I feel that this source will help me shape what type of research I will conduct; its broads will serve as both an advantage and a disadvantage
Quote Analysis“The lai uses the lycanthropy motif to rearticulate the problem of human appearance and reality as a question about animality and the limits of the human--a question it answers in a way calculated to dispel one of courtly society's founding aporias. Courtliness is bound up with a commitment to accept appearance as truth: beauty denotes virtue or prowess, mastery of polite forms bespeaks nobility of spirit, and the knight's martial performance actualizes him as a heroic subject.” (Wood)
In this quote selected from "The Werewolf as Mobius Strip, or Becoming Bisclavret" displays, first, the focus of the article; that there is a deeper meaning to Bisclavret being a werewolf. The excerpt starts off with claiming that there is the motif of lycanthropy, the transformation of a wolf, as recounted by folk tales, plays a major symbol for two problems in the poem. One being that it is a failed beauty and the beast tale where Bisclavret’s monthly beastly form is completely rejected by his wife. Also, Wood argues, that it has to do with the “limits of the human” meaning that by becoming a wolf Bisclavret would need to a more inexplicable amount of effort to keep and maintain his human it when he is a wolf and remains to be one for an extended period of time. The quote goes on to say that the poem offers a new lesson of how, through his new appearance and that commitment to this appearance, Bisclavret is characterized a purer than this wife who remained human for the entirety of the lay. Wood writes “beauty denotes virtue,” meaning that beauty was always a form of purity, however it was the wolf, the non-human, who remained more virtuous than his wife whose betrayed her husband to marry another.
“Every single lay of Marie de France contains a person, sometime more them one whose behavior displays great cruelty, either physical or mental: this can be the one hero or heroine, or some other important personage. Whilst it is clear that some of the figures may well be traditional […] this in no way invalidates my argument, namely that Marie has chosen to include an unusually large number of ‘villains’ in her Lais…” (Curtis)
This quote taken from "Physical and Mental Cruelty in the "Lais" of Marie De France," introduces the reader to the idea of the recurring theme through all of the Lais of Marie de France. This quotes claims that there is one person, or more, who are responsible for cruelty of a physical and mental nature to the main character of the lay. The villains of this lay is the wife of Bisclavret and the knight she later made her husband. It can be argued however that is just the wife who is just the villain because she is the lone person responsible for Bisclavret extended term as a werewolf, and the knight is just a mere puppet with no say in the matter. That being said it is obvious that there is cruelty given to Bisclavret in this lay. The physical cruelty is that he is cut off from physically turning back to his human self after the three full day of being a were wolf. With this physical cruelty come the mental, meaning by remaining a werewolf for so long could take a toll on Bisclavret’s mental state, especially the state of his humanity for he is unable to be a physical human for over a year.
“At the beginning of the poem, for example, the reader does not know where the husband and wife are conversing. In addition to the lack of valuable details, there is a relative scarcity of personal emotions and reactions reported in the lay. The suppression of such information results in more intense focus upon both the unfolding action and t the moral problem of the wife’s infidelity” (Rothschild)
In this quote from "A Rapprochement between Bisclavret and Lanval," Rothschild conveys that the physical trap that Bisclavret was put in can be predicted right off the bat. Rothschild claims that is it through the lack of information that make one able to tell that the marriage between Bisclavret and his wife is not meant to last. The conversations that is described in the beginning of the lay lacks “personal emotions and reactions” meaning that Marie de France was probably trying to take away from the positive characteristic of Bisclavret’s wife. So far in the beginning of the poem, the reader already knows that Bisclavret is beloved by the king, thus making it the only information known about the baron. On the other hand Bisclavret’s wife has no description to her and with such a lack of information it makes it immensely easy for the reader to pass judgment of Bisclavret’s wife as the villain of the tale. Rothschild argues that “The suppression of such information results in more intense focus upon both the unfolding action and t the moral problem of the wife’s infidelity” this means that the reader would be distracted if further information about the baron and his wife were given, thus leaving room for the reader to focus on the pure actions and consequences of the lay; Bisclavret’s prevention of returning to human form and his wife’s infidelity after he plan was executed.
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